Information processing apparatus and method

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to information processing apparatuses. A content to be checked out is stored in an automatic-checking-out-destination storage section  113  from musical-piece-file storage sections  108 - 1  and  108 - 2  for each external-unit/-medium ID which identifies a PD  5 . A GUI section  101  determines through a transfer processing section  103  and a PD plug-in  111  whether the PD  5  has been connected. When it is determined that the PD  5  has been connected, a musical-piece file is checked out from the musical-piece-file storage sections  108  to the PD  5  through a musical-piece management section  104 , a file search section  106 , and a data base  107  according to the information of the content to be checked out stored in the automatic-checking-out-destination storage section  113 . The present invention can be applied to music reproduction software.

This is a Continuation Application of U.S. Ser. No. 10/415,513, filed onSep. 29, 2003, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entiretyherein.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to information processing apparatuses andmethods, and more particularly, to an information processing apparatusand an information processing method for more easily executing a processfor selecting a desired data item from a plurality of data items (suchas the contents of music data and image data) and for recording it in arecording medium.

BACKGROUND ART

As digital technologies have been spread, various contents (data) formedof music data, image data, and others have been recorded in recordingmedia or reproduced, in a digital manner in recent years. With suchdigitization, HDDs (hard disc drives) of personal computers and otherrecording media have also had larger capacities. Therefore, the user cannow manage a huge amount of contents by personal computers and others.

In a typical example, a personal computer has a function for reproducinga great number of musical contents, which is generally called a jukebox,and software reproduces musical contents recorded in its HDD and others.

This jukebox software can search for a desired musical content accordingto a predetermined condition and reproduce it. When the user inputs“bossa nova” as a search condition, for example, only a recorded musicalcontent having a genre of “bossa nova” is selected and reproduced amongthe musical contents recorded in the HDD. With such a process, the usercan easily reproduce a musical content in a desired genre withoutsearching a great number of contents stored in the HDD one by one.

When the selected musical content is recorded in a recording medium suchas a memory card and reproduced by a portable musical-content playerapparatus having a jukebox function such as that described above, theuser usually executes a selection process for selecting a musicalcontent to be recorded in the recording medium on a personal computer,and further performs a recording process for recording the selectedmusical content in the recording medium. In other words, the user needsto execute two processes, the selection process and the recordingprocess, to transfer the musical content to the recording medium.

In addition, since the number of musical contents to be recorded in therecording medium is generally limited, the user wants to execute aprocess for changing the recorded contents after repeated listening fora certain period because the user feels redundant. Then, the user mountsthe recording medium to the personal computer, deletes the contentsrecorded in the recording medium, and performs the selection process andthe recording process to record different musical contents in therecording medium.

Therefore, the user needs to repeat the deletion process, the selectionprocess, and the recording process at a certain time interval on thepersonal computer by activating the above-described software. Operationstherefor are troublesome.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

The present invention has been made in consideration of the foregoingcondition. An object of the present invention is to allow a process forchanging musical contents recorded in a recording medium by usingmusical contents recorded in a personal computer or others to beperformed easily.

An information processing apparatus according to the present inventionis characterized by comprising reading means for reading data recordedin a recording medium; data storage means for storing data whichincludes the data read by the reading means; extracting means forextracting data corresponding to a predetermined condition from the datastored in the data storage means; and data recording means for recordingthe data extracted by the extracting means in the recording medium.

The predetermined condition may include musical pieces recently listenedto, musical pieces checked out a small number of times, musical pieceson a favorite play list, musical pieces selected at random, a play listselected at random, genre designation, and play-list designation.

The information processing apparatus may be configured such that itfurther includes condition storage means for storing a plurality ofpredetermined conditions; and selection means for selecting anypredetermined condition among the plurality of predetermined conditions,and the extracting means extracts data corresponding to the anypredetermined condition selected by the selection means, from the datastored in the data storage means.

The information processing apparatus may be configured such that theselection means selects in advance the any predetermined condition amongthe plurality of predetermined conditions, the apparatus furtherincludes selected-condition storage means for storing the anypredetermined condition selected in advance by the selection means, andthe extracting means extracts data corresponding to the anypredetermined condition selected in advance and stored in theselected-condition storage means, from the data stored in the datastorage means.

The information processing apparatus may be configured such that itfurther includes condition storage means for storing a plurality ofpredetermined conditions; and selection means for selecting a pluralityof any predetermined conditions from the plurality of predeterminedconditions, and the extracting means extracts data corresponding to theplurality of any predetermined conditions selected by the selectionmeans, from the data stored in the data storage means.

The information processing apparatus may be configured such that theselection means selects in advance the plurality of any predeterminedconditions from the plurality of predetermined conditions, the apparatusfurther includes selected-condition storage means for storing theplurality of any predetermined conditions selected in advance by theselection means, and the extracting means extracts data corresponding tothe plurality of any predetermined conditions selected in advance andstored in the selected-condition storage means, from the data stored inthe data storage means.

The information processing apparatus may be configured such that theselection means selects in advance the plurality of any predeterminedconditions from the plurality of predetermined conditions, the apparatusfurther includes selected-condition storage means for storing theplurality of any predetermined conditions selected in advance by theselection means, the extracting means extracts data corresponding to theplurality of any predetermined conditions selected in advance and storedin the selected-condition storage means, from the data stored in thedata storage means, and the data recording means records the dataextracted by the extracting means in the recording medium such that datacorresponding to the any predetermined conditions can be read in apredetermined order.

The information processing apparatus may be configured such that itfurther includes recording-medium-identifying-ID reading means forreading an ID which identifies the recording medium, the conditionstorage means stores a plurality of predetermined conditions for eachID, and the selection means selects any predetermined condition amongthe plurality of predetermined conditions according to the ID.

The information processing apparatus may be configured such that itfurther includes condition recording means for recording thepredetermined condition in the recording medium; and condition readingmeans for reading the predetermined condition recorded in the recordingmedium, and the extracting means extracts data corresponding to thepredetermined condition read by the condition reading means, from thedata stored in the data storage means.

The data recording means may record the data extracted by the extractingmeans such that the remaining capacity of the recording medium becomessmaller.

An information processing method according to the present invention ischaracterized by comprising a reading step of reading data recorded in arecording medium; a data storage step of storing data which includes thedata read in the process of the reading step; an extracting step ofextracting data corresponding to a predetermined condition from the datastored in the process of the data storage step; and a data recordingstep of recording the data extracted in the process of the extractingstep in the recording medium.

A program according to the present invention is characterized by makinga computer execute a reading control step of controlling reading of datarecorded in a recording medium; a data storage control step ofcontrolling storage of data which includes the data read in the processof the reading control step; an extracting control step of controllingextraction of data corresponding to a predetermined condition from thedata stored in the process of the data storage control step; and a datarecording control step of controlling recording of the data extracted inthe process of the extracting control step in the recording medium.

In an information processing apparatus, an information processingmethod, and a program according to the present invention, data recordedin a recording medium is read, data which includes the read data isstored, data corresponding to a predetermined condition is extractedfrom the stored data, and the extracted data is recorded in therecording medium.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a view showing a content-data management system according toan embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the structure of a personal computer.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing functions of a personal computer.

FIG. 4 is a view showing example data recorded in a data base shown inFIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a view showing the relationship between musical pieces andfiles.

FIG. 6 is a view showing example right information.

FIG. 7 is a view showing a content encryption process, a process foradding right information to a corresponding content, and a process forconverting a content encoding method.

FIG. 8 is a view showing example descriptions of the definition files ofchecking-out methods stored in an automatic-checking-out-item storagesection shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 9 is a view showing information stored in anautomatic-checking-out-destination storage section shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 10 is a view showing an example screen displayed on a display.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing automatic check-in/check-out settingprocessing.

FIG. 12 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 13 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing automatic check-in/check-out processing.

FIG. 15 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 16 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing setting processing shown in FIG. 14.

FIG. 18 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 19 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 20 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 21 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 22 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 23 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart showing mix checking-out processing.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart showing automatic-check-in/check-out destinationsetting processing.

FIG. 26 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 27 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

FIG. 28 is a view showing an example screen displayed on the display.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 is a view showing a content-data management system according toan embodiment of the present invention. A personal computer 1 isconnected to a network 2 formed of a local area network or the Internet.The personal computer 1 records musical data (hereinafter called acontent) received from an EMD (electronic music distribution) server 3,or read from a CD (compact disc) as is, or converts the data to have apredetermined encoding method (such as ATRAC3 (trademark)), encrypts itby an encryption method such as DES (data encryption standard), andrecords it.

The personal computer 1 records right information indicating the usecondition of the content, correspondingly to the content not-encryptedor encrypted, and recorded.

The right information indicates, for example, the number (number ofportable devices which can perform so-called checking out, describedlater) of portable devices (also called PDs) which can use at the sametime the content corresponding to the right information. Even when thecontent is checked out the same number of times as the number indicatedby the right information, the personal computer 1 can reproduce thecontent.

The right information also indicates information of whether the contentis allowed to be copied. When the content is copied onto portabledevices 5-1 to 5-3, the personal computer 1 can reproduce the recordedcontent. The number of times the content is allowed to be stored in theportable devices 5-1 to 5-3 is limited in some cases. In these cases,the number of times the content is allowed to be copied is notincreased.

In addition, the right information indicates information of whether thecontent is allowed to be moved to another personal computer. After thecontent is moved to the portable devices 5-1 to 5-3, the personalcomputer 1 cannot use the recorded content (because the content isdeleted or the right information thereof is changed).

Details of the right information will be described later.

The personal computer 1 stores encoded and recorded contents togetherwith data (such as the titles of musical pieces or reproductionconditions) related to the contents in the connected portable device 5-1through a USB (universal serial bus) cable, and updates the rightinformation corresponding to the stored contents (hereinaftercollectively called performs checking out) when the portable device 5-1has stored the contents. More precisely, when checking out is performed,the number of times the right information can be checked out, the numberbeing recorded in the personal computer 1, is reduced by one. When thenumber of times checking out is allowed is zero, the correspondingcontent cannot be checked out.

The personal computer 1 stores encoded and recorded contents togetherwith data related to the contents in the connected portable device 5-2through a USB cable, and updates the right information corresponding tothe stored contents when the portable device 5-2 has stored thecontents. The personal computer 1 stores encoded and recorded contentstogether with data related to the contents in the connected portabledevice 5-3 through a USB cable, and updates the right informationcorresponding to the stored contents when the portable device 5-3 hasstored the contents.

The personal computer 1 makes the connected portable device 5-1 delete(or disable in use) a content checked out by the personal computer 1 tothe portable device 5-1 through the USB cable, and updates the rightinformation corresponding to the deleted content (hereinaftercollectively called performs checking in). More precisely, when checkingin is performed, the number of times the right information can bechecked out, the number being recorded in the personal computer 1, isincreased by one.

The personal computer 1 makes the connected portable device 5-2 delete(or disable in use) a content checked out by the personal computer 1 tothe portable device 5-2 through the USB cable, and updates the rightinformation corresponding to the deleted content. The personal computer1 makes the connected portable device 5-3 delete (or disable in use) acontent checked out by the personal computer 1 to the portable device5-3 through the USB cable, and updates the right informationcorresponding to the deleted content.

The personal computer 1 cannot check in a content checked out by anotherpersonal computer not shown to the portable device 5-1. The personalcomputer 1 cannot check in a content checked out by another personalcomputer to the portable device 5-2. The personal computer 1 cannotcheck in a content checked out by another personal computer to theportable device 5-3.

The EMD server 3 sends contents together with data (such as the titlesof musical pieces or reproduction restrictions) related to the contentsto the personal computer 1 through the network 2 in response to arequest of the personal computer 1.

The contents sent from the EMD server 3 have been encoded by apredetermined encoding method and have been encrypted by a predeterminedencryption method. The EMD server 3 sends a key used for decoding thecontents to the personal computer 1.

In response to a request from the personal computer 1, a WWW (world wideweb) server 4 sends data corresponding to a CD from which its contentshave been read (such as the album name of the CD and the sales companyof the CD), and data (such as the names of musical pieces and the nameof the composer) corresponding to the contents read from the CD, to thepersonal computer 1 through the network 2.

The portable device 5-1 stores the contents (that is, the checked-outcontents and others) sent from the personal computer 1 together withdata (such as the titles of musical pieces or reproduction restrictions)related to the contents. The portable device 5-1 reproduces the storedcontents according to the data related to the contents and outputs to aheadphone not shown and others.

When an attempt is made to reproduce a content, for example, if thenumber of reproduction times exceeds a reproduction restriction whichhas been stored as the data related to the content, the portable device5-1 stops reproducing the corresponding content. When an attempt is madeto perform reproduction after the reproduction time limit expires whichhas been stored as the data related to the content, the portable device5-1 stops reproducing the corresponding content.

The user can unload the portable device 5-1 which has stored contents,from the personal computer 1, walk with the device, and reproduce astored content to listen to the music corresponding to the content by aheadphone.

The portable device 5-2 stores the contents sent from the personalcomputer 1 together with data related to the contents. The portabledevice 5-2 reproduces the stored contents according to the data relatedto the contents and outputs to a headphone not shown and others. Theuser can unload the portable device 5-2 which has stored contents, fromthe personal computer 1, walk with the device, and reproduce a storedcontent to listen to the music corresponding to the content by aheadphone.

The portable device 5-3 stores the contents sent from the personalcomputer 1 together with data related to the contents. The portabledevice 5-3 reproduces the stored contents according to the data relatedto the contents and outputs to a headphone not shown and others. Theuser can unload the portable device 5-3 which has stored contents, fromthe personal computer 1, walk with the device, and reproduce a storedcontent to listen to the music corresponding to the content by aheadphone.

Hereinafter, if it is not necessary to individually separate theportable devices 5-1 to 5-3, they are collectively called a portabledevice 5.

FIG. 2 is a view showing the structure of the personal computer 1. A CPU(central processing unit) 11 actually executes various applicationprograms for implementing functions described later and an OS (operatingsystem). A ROM (read-only memory) 12 generally stores basically fixeddata among programs and calculation parameters used by the CPU 11. A RAM(random-access memory) 13 stores programs used in an execution performedby the CPU 11 and parameters changed in the execution if necessary. TheCPU 11, the ROM 12, and the RAM 13 are connected to each other by a hostbus 14 formed of a CPU bus and others.

The host bus 14 is connected to an external bus 16 such as a PCI(peripheral component interconnect/interface) bus through a bridge 15.

A keyboard 18 is operated by the user to input various instructions tothe CPU 11. A mouse 19 is operated by the user to specify or select apoint on a screen of a display 20. The display 20 is formed of aliquid-crystal display apparatus, a CRT (cathode ray tube), or others,and displays various pieces of information by text and images. An HDD(hard disk drive) 21 drives hard disks to record or reproduce programsexecuted by the CPU 11 and information into or from the hard disks.

A drive 22 reads data or a program recorded in a loaded magnetic disk41, a loaded optical disk 42 (including a CD), a loaded magneto-opticaldisk 43, or a loaded semiconductor memory 44, and sends the data orprogram to the RAM 13 through an interface 17, the external bus 16, thebridge 15, and the host bus 14.

A USB port 23-1 is connected to the portable device 5-1 through a USBcable. The USB port 23-1 outputs data (such as a content or a commandfor the portable device 5-1) sent from the HDD 21, the CPU 11, or theRAM 13 through the interface 17, the external bus 16, the bridge 15, andthe host bus 14, to the portable device 5-1.

A USB port 23-2 is connected to the portable device 5-2 through a USBcable. The USB port 23-2 outputs data (such as a content or a commandfor the portable device 5-2) sent from the HDD 21, the CPU 11, or theRAM 13 through the interface 17, the external bus 16, the bridge 15, andthe host bus 14, to the portable device 5-2.

A USB port 23-3 is connected to the portable device 5-3 through a USBcable. The USB port 23-3 outputs data (such as a content or a commandfor the portable device 5-3) sent from the HDD 21, the CPU 11, or theRAM 13 through the interface 17, the external bus 16, the bridge 15, andthe host bus 14, to the portable device 5-3.

According to an audio signal sent from the interface 17, a speaker 24outputs the predetermined sound corresponding to the content.

The keyboard 18, the mouse 19, the display 20, the HDD 21, the drive 22,the USB ports 23-1 to 23-3, and the speaker 24 are all connected to theinterface 17, and the interface 17 is connected to the CPU 11 throughthe external bus 16, the bridge 15, and the host bus 14.

A communication section 25 is connected to the network 2, stores data(such as a request for sending a content) sent from the CPU 11 or theHDD 21 in packets by a predetermined method and sends through thenetwork 2, and outputs data (such as a content) stored in packetsreceived through the network 2, to the CPU 11, the RAM 13, or the HDD21.

The communication section 25 is connected to the CPU 11 through theexternal bus 16, the bridge 15, and the host bus 14.

When it is not necessary to distinguish the USB ports 23-1 to 23-3individually, they are simply called USB ports 23 hereinafter.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing functions of the personal computer 1,implemented when the CPU 11 executes a content management program. Inresponse to a user's operation at the keyboard 18 or the mouse 19, a GUI(graphical user interface) section 101 sends the name of the musicalpiece corresponding to the content the user desires or the name of thefile which stores the content, and others to a musical-piece managementsection 104, and also requests from the musical-piece management section104 the input of the data corresponding to the content into a data base107. The GUI section 101 controls an operation mode (on and off) ofautomatic checking in/checking out.

The GUI section 101 obtains data, such as the ID of the musical piece,the name of the musical piece, or an artist name, corresponding to thecontent from the data base 107 through the musical-piece managementsection 104, and displays the ID of the musical piece, the name of themusical piece, or the artist name on the display 20. When the userrequests the reproduction of the content by a user's operation, the GUIsection 101 sends the ID of the musical piece corresponding to thecontent for which reproduction is requested, to a content managementprocessing section 102, and requests the content management processingsection 102 to reproduce the content.

When a content is requested to be transferred (checked out, copied, ormoved) by a user's operation or an automatic checking-in/checking-outprocess, the GUI section 101 sends the ID of the musical piececorresponding to the content for which transfer is requested, to atransfer processing section 103, and requests the transfer processingsection 103 to transfer the content.

When the content management processing section 102 receives the requestto reproduce the content from the GUI section 101, the contentmanagement processing section 102 sends the ID of the musical piececorresponding to the content for which reproduction is requested, to themusical-piece management section 104, and requests the file namecorresponding to the content. When the content management processingsection 102 obtains the file name from the musical-piece managementsection 104, the content management processing section 102 obtains thecontent from a musical-piece-file storage section 108-1 or 108-2 throughthe musical-piece management section 104, a file search section 106, andthe data base 107.

The content management processing section 102 sends the obtained contentto a PC (protected content) plug-in 109-1 or 109-2.

When the PC plug-in 109-1 receives the content from the contentmanagement processing section 102, if the content is not encrypted, thePC plug-in 109-1 decodes the content, which has been encoded, and sendsaudio data to a sound output section 110-1. When the PC plug-in 109-1receives the content from the content management processing section 102,if the content has been encrypted, the PC plug-in 109-1 decrypts theencrypted content to generate a not-encrypted content and decodes it,which has been encoded, and sends audio data to the sound output section110-1. The sound output section 110-1 generates an audio signal from theaudio data and makes the speaker 24 output the sound.

When the PC plug-in 109-2 receives the content from the contentmanagement processing section 102, if the content is not encrypted, thePC plug-in 109-2 decodes the content, which has been encoded, and sendsaudio data to a sound output section 110-2. When the PC plug-in 109-2receives the content from the content management processing section 102,if the content has been encrypted, the PC plug-in 109-2 decrypts theencrypted content to generate a not-encrypted content and decodes it,which has been encoded, and sends audio data to the sound output section110-2. The sound output section 110-2 generates an audio signal from theaudio data and makes the speaker 24 output the sound.

The user can further install an additional PC plug-in to the personalcomputer 1.

When it is not necessary to distinguish the PC plug-in 109-1 and the PCplug-in 109-2 individually, they are simply called PC plug-ins 109hereinafter.

When the transfer processing section 103 is requested by the GUI section101 to transfer a content, the transfer processing section 103 sends theID of the musical piece corresponding to the content for which transferhas been requested, to the musical-piece management section 104, andalso requests the name of the file corresponding to the content. Whenthe transfer processing section 103 obtains the file name from themusical-piece management section 104, the transfer processing section103 obtains the content corresponding to the file name from themusical-piece storage section 108-1 or 108-2 through the musical-piecemanagement section 104, the file search section 106, and the data base107.

The transfer processing section 103 sends the obtained content to a PDplug-in 111-1 or 111-2.

When the PD plug-in 111-1 sends a content to the portable device 5-1,the PD plug-in 111-1 perform mutual authentication with the portabledevice 5-1. When the mutual authentication fails, the PD plug-in 111-1does not send the content to the portable device 5-1.

When the PD plug-in 111-1 receives a content from the transferprocessing section 103, if the content has been encrypted, the PDplug-in 111-1 sends the content together with data related to thecontent to the portable device 5-1. When the PD plug-in 111-1 receives acontent from the transfer processing section 103, if the content has notbeen encrypted, the PD plug-in 111-1 encrypts the content, and sends theencrypted content together with data related to the content to theportable device 5-1.

The mutual authentication may be performed when the portable device 5-1is connected to the personal computer 1.

When the PD plug-in 111-2 sends a content to the portable device 5-2,the PD plug-in 111-2 perform mutual authentication with the portabledevice 5-2. When the mutual authentication fails, the PD plug-in 111-2does not send the content to the portable device 5-1.

When the PD plug-in 111-2 receives a content from the transferprocessing section 103, if the content has been encrypted, the PDplug-in 111-2 sends the content together with data related to thecontent to the portable device 5-2. When the PD plug-in 111-2 receives acontent from the transfer processing section 103, if the content has notbeen encrypted, the PD plug-in 111-2 encrypts the content, and sends theencrypted content together with data related to the content to theportable device 5-2.

The mutual authentication may be performed when the portable device 5-2is connected to the personal computer 1.

The user can further install an additional PD plug-in to the personalcomputer 1.

When it is not necessary to distinguish the PD plug-in 111-1 and the PDplug-in 111-2 individually, they are simply called PD plug-ins 111hereinafter.

The musical-piece management section 104 stores the content stored in afile recorded in the HDD 21 or the content sent from the contentmanagement processing section 102 in a file and records it in themusical-piece-file storage section 108-1 or 108-2 through the data base107.

The musical-piece management section 104 records data such as the nameof the musical piece corresponding to a content and the name of the filecorresponding to the content in the data base 107, and reads the name ofa musical piece or the name of a file from the data base 107. When themusical-piece management section 104 receives the name of a musicalpiece or the name of a file from the GUI section 101, the musical-piecemanagement section 104 adds a record and records the name of the musicalpiece or the name of the file as an item in the record in the data base107.

In response to a request from the GUI section 101, the musical-piecemanagement section 104 reads all the names of musical pieces and all theIDs of the musical pieces recorded in the data base 107, from the database 107, and sends them to the GUI section 101.

When the musical-piece management section 104 receives the ID of amusical piece from the content management processing section 102, themusical-piece management section 104 reads the name of the filecorresponding to the ID of the musical piece from the data base 107, andsends the read file name to the content management processing section102. When the musical-piece management section 104 receives the ID of amusical piece from the transfer processing section 103, themusical-piece management section 104 reads the name of the filecorresponding to the ID of the musical piece from the data base 107, andsends the read file name to the transfer processing section 103.

In the automatic checking-in/checking-out process, the musical-piecemanagement section 104 reads information describing a checking-out item(checking-out method) for each PD 5 from anautomatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113, and reads acontent from the musical-piece-file storage section 108 through the filesearch section 106 and the data base 107 by the method corresponding tothe read checking-out item. In this case, the musical-piece managementsection 104 reads a file (program) describing a content readingprocedure from an automatic-checking-out-item storage section 112, andexecutes reading according to the procedure described in the file.

In response to a request from the musical-piece management section 104,the file search section 106 searches for the file (which stores thecontent) having the file name obtained from the data base 107, in themusical-piece-file storage section 108-1 or 108-2. The file searchsection 106 sends the file read from the musical-piece-file storagesection 108-1 or 108-2, to the musical-piece management section 104, orchanges the file name and sends the file having the changed file name tothe musical-piece management section 104.

The musical-piece management section 104 sends the file which stores thecontent, sent from the file search section 106, to the contentmanagement processing section 102 or to the transfer processing section103.

The data base 107 records data related to contents, such as the IDs ofmusical pieces, the names of the musical pieces, file names, and otherattributes. The data base 107 is stored in the HDD 21.

FIG. 4 is a view showing example data recorded in the data base 107. Thedata base 107 is, for example, a relational data base, and manages datacorresponding to contents by a musical-piece table and a file table.

For example, the musical-piece table is formed of records each having amusical-piece-ID item and a musical-piece-name item, and stores onemusical-piece name correspondingly to one musical-piece ID. Onemusical-piece ID uniquely corresponds to one musical piece.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, the musical-piece table records amusical-piece name of Song-A correspondingly to a musical-piece ID ofone, a musical-piece name of Song-B correspondingly to a musical-pieceID of two, and a musical-piece name of Song-C correspondingly to amusical-piece ID of three.

For example, the file table is formed of records each having a file-IDitem, a musical-piece-ID item, a format item, a codec item, a bit-rateitem, and a file-name item, and stores a musical-piece ID, a format, acodec, a bit rate, and a file name correspondingly to one file ID. Twoor more file IDs may correspond to the same musical-piece ID.

One file ID uniquely corresponds to one file. The format indicates afile format. The codec indicates the encoding method of the contentstored in the file. The bit rate indicates the amount of data per unittime (for example, one second) of the content. The file name indicates,for example, a file name which includes a path formed of a drive nameand a folder name.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, the file table stores a musical-piece IDof one, a format of MP3, a codec of MP3, a bit rate of 128,000, and afile name of F:\Music\Song-A.mp3 correspondingly to a file ID of 101;and a musical-piece ID of one, a format of OpenMG, a codec of ATRAC3, abit rate of 105,000, and a file name of F:\Optimized\Song-A.omgcorrespondingly to a file ID of 102. In the example shown in FIG. 4, thefile table also stores a musical-piece ID of two, a format of MP3, acodec of MP3, a bit rate of 128,000, and a file name ofF:\Music\Song-B.mp3 correspondingly to a file ID of 103.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, the file table further stores amusical-piece ID of three, a format of OpenMG, a codec of ATRAC3, a bitrate of 132,000, and a file name of F:\Music\Song-C.omg correspondinglyto a file ID of 104; and a musical-piece ID of three, a format ofOpenMG, a codec of ATRAC3, a bit rate of 105,000, and a file name ofF:\Music\Song-C2.omg correspondingly to a file ID of 105.

The musical-piece file storage section 108-1 is formed, for example, ofthe HDD 21 or an external storage apparatus not shown, such as aremovable disk apparatus, and stores contents as files. The contentsrecorded in the musical-piece-file storage section 108-1 may have rightinformation or have no right information. The musical-piece-file storagesection 108-1 can store one or more files for one musical piece. Themusical-piece-file storage section 108-1 corresponds, for example, toone drive letter. The drive letter corresponding to themusical-piece-file storage section 108-1 may be changed.

The musical-piece file storage section 108-2 is formed, for example, ofthe HDD 21 or an external storage apparatus not shown, such as aremovable disk apparatus, and stores contents as files. The contentsrecorded in the musical-piece-file storage section 108-2 may have rightinformation or have no right information. The musical-piece-file storagesection 108-2 can store one or more files for one musical piece. Themusical-piece-file storage section 108-2 corresponds, for example, toone drive letter. The drive letter corresponding to themusical-piece-file storage section 108-2 may be changed.

There is a case in which one or more files corresponding to one musicalpiece are recorded in the musical-piece-file storage section 108-1, andone or more files corresponding to the musical piece are recorded in themusical-piece-file storage section 108-2.

FIG. 5 is a view showing the relationship between musical pieces andfiles. In an example shown in FIG. 5, a musical piece of Song-Abelonging to a play list A corresponds to FileA.omg, a musical piece ofSong-B belonging to the play list A and to a play list B corresponds toFileB.mp3 and FileC.omg, and a musical piece of Song-C belonging to theplay list A corresponds to FileD.wav. A play list is a unit used forclassifying musical pieces, and is used for displaying a musical-piecename. No musical piece or one or more musical pieces are associated witha play list.

With this, two or more files having different formats or differentencoding methods can be used as one content.

A right-information storage section 105 stores right informationcorresponding to files conforming to a standard specified by SDMI(Secure Digital Music Initiative), for example, in the HDD 21 andmanages it. When the right-information storage section 105 receives amusical-piece ID from the musical-piece management section 104, theright-information storage section 105 searches for one piece of rightinformation corresponding to the musical-piece ID, and sends thesearched-for right information to the musical-piece management section104.

FIG. 6 is a view showing example right information stored in theright-information storage section 105. The right information includes,for example, a content ID, the remaining number of times reproduction isallowed, the remaining number of times checking out is allowed,reproduction start date and time, and reproduction end date and time.The right information stored in the right-information storage section105 corresponds to one file stored in the musical-piece-file storagesection 108-1 or 108-2.

A file stored in the musical-piece-file storage section 108-1 or 108-2includes, for example, a header and a content which is musical-piecedata.

A process for encrypting a content, a process for adding rightinformation to the corresponding content, and a process for converting acontent encoding method will be described next by referring to FIG. 7.

When a MP3-method content is imported (input to the data base 107), forexample, if a first setting (specified by an operation at the GUIsection 101 ) has been performed, right information is not generated,and the data corresponding to the content is input to the database 107.

It is determined in response to a subsequent operation whether theMP3-method content imported without generating right information hasincluded a predetermined-method watermark. When it is determined thatthe MP3-method content has not included a predetermined-methodwatermark, the MP3-method content is further encrypted and checked out,or an ATRAC3-method content is further generated and encrypted, and theencrypted ATRAC3-method content is stored in the musical-piece-filestorage section 108.

When a MP3-method content is imported, for example, if a second settinghas been performed, it is determined whether the MP3-method content hasincluded a predetermined-method watermark. When it is determined thatthe MP3-method content has not included a predetermined-methodwatermark, the data corresponding to the content is input to the database 107. Further, the encoding method of the MP3-method content is notchanged, and the content remains as unencrypted. Right informationcorresponding to the MP3-method content is generated. The generatedright information is stored in the right-information storage section105.

In response to a subsequent operation, the imported MP3-method contentfor which the right information has been generated is further encryptedand checked out, or an ATRAC3-method content is further generated andencrypted, and the encrypted ATRAC3-method content is stored in themusical-piece-file storage section 108.

With such operations, it is not necessary for the content-datamanagement system to record an encrypted content and an unencryptedcontent both having the same content, and recording areas such as theHDD 21 can be effectively used.

When a MP3-method content is imported, if a third setting has beenperformed, it is determined whether the MP3-method content has includeda predetermined-method watermark. When it is determined that theMP3-method content has not included a predetermined-method watermark,the data corresponding to the content is input to the data base 107.Further, the MP3-method content is converted to have the ATRAC3 method,the generated content is encrypted, and the ATRAC3-method encryptedcontent is stored in the musical-piece-file storage section 108. Rightinformation corresponding to the ATRAC3-method content is generated, andthe generated right information is stored in the right-informationstorage section 105.

When a content has included a predetermined-method watermark, thecontent is not input, its encryption method is not changed, the contentis not encrypted, and the content is not checked out.

When a content recorded in a CD is ripped, the read content is convertedto have the ATRAC3 method and encrypted, and the ATRAC3-method encryptedcontent is recorded in the musical-piece-file storage section 108. Rightinformation corresponding to the ATRAC3-method content is generated, andthe generated right information is stored in the right-informationstorage section 105.

The above-described importing process, the predetermined processperformed after importing, or the ripping process is applied to one ormore contents.

The automatic-checking-out-item storage section 112 has stored adefinition file indicating an item (method) for checking out amusical-piece file (content) stored in the musical-piece-file storagesection 108 when executing the automatic checking-out process. Theautomatic-checking-out-item storage section 112 refers to the method toexecute automatic checking out. The automatic checking-in/checking-outprocess will be described later in detail.

FIG. 8 shows an example description of a definition file for eachchecking-out method. Seven checking-out methods are defined, “musicalpieces recently listened to,” “musical pieces checked out a small numberof times,” “musical pieces on a favorite play list,” “musical piecesselected at random,” “a play list selected at random,” “specify genre,”and “specify play list.”

In the definition file of “musical pieces recently listened to,” forexample, “ObjectSpecId=2” is described at a first row, indicates whethera play list is selected or a musical piece is selected, and alsoindicates that a play list is selected when the value is one, and amusical piece is selected when the value is two. More specifically, inthe current case, it is indicated that the musical-piece-file storagesection 108 selects a musical piece.

“FilterPropertySpecId=303” is described at a second row to indicate aproperty by which a filtering process is applied. In the current case,“303” is displayed as a parameter to indicate that the reproduction dateand time are keys for the filtering process. More specifically, thesecond row indicates that the filtering process is applied tomusical-piece files stored in the musical-piece-file storage section 108by the reproduction date and time.

“Filter=%s>0” is described at a third row to indicate a condition forthe filtering process. It is indicated that the value specified in thesecond-row description, that is, the value of the reproduction date andtime, is substituted for “%s.”

“SortPropertySpecId=303” is described at a fourth row to indicate aproperty by which a sort process is applied. In the current case, “303”is displayed as a parameter to indicate that a reference for the sortprocess is the reproduction date and time. More specifically, the fourthrow indicates that the sort process is applied to the musical-piecefiles stored in the musical-piece-file storage section 108 by thereproduction date and time.

“Asc=−1” is described at a fifth row to indicate whether the sortprocess shown at the fourth row is performed in the ascending order orin the descending order. In the current case, since the parameter is setto “−1,” the descending order is used.

In summary, the definition file of “musical pieces recently listened to”indicates that the musical-piece files are sorted in the descendingorder of the reproduction date and time.

In the definition file of “musical pieces checked out a small number oftimes,” “ObjectSpecId=2” is described at a first row to indicate whethera play list is selected or a musical piece is selected. In the currentcase, it is indicated that the musical-piece-file storage section 108selects a musical piece.

“SortPropertySpecId=1146” is described at a second row to indicate aproperty by which a sort process is applied. In the current case, theparameter is set to “1146” to indicate that the number of accumulatedchecking-out times is used as a reference for the sort process. Morespecifically, the second row indicates that the sort process is appliedto the musical-piece files stored in the musical-piece-file storagesection 108 by the number of accumulated checking-out times.

“Asc=1” is described at a third row to indicate whether the sort processshown at a fourth row is performed in the ascending order or in thedescending order. In the current case, since the parameter is set to“1,” the ascending order is indicated.

In summary, the definition file of “musical pieces checked out a smallnumber of times” indicates that the musical-piece files are sorted inthe ascending order of the number of accumulated checking-out times.

In the definition file of “musical pieces on a favorite play list,” adefinition command of “Algorithm” is used and a parameter is set to“favorite” to indicate that musical-piece files belonging to a favoriteplay list are extracted.

In the definition file of “musical pieces selected at random,” adefinition command of “Algorithm” is used and a parameter is set to“random” to indicate that musical-piece files are extracted at random.

In the definition file of “musical pieces selected at random,” adefinition command of “Algorithm” is used and a parameter is set to“randomPlayList” to indicate that a play list is selected at random andthe musical-piece files belonging to the selected play list areextracted.

In the definition file of “specify genre,” “ObjectSpecId=2” is describedat a first row. In this case, it is indicated that themusical-piece-file storage section 108 selects a musical piece.

“FilterPropertySpecId=200” is described at a second row to indicate aproperty by which a filtering process is applied. In the current case,the parameter is set to “200” to indicate that a genre name is used as areference for the filtering process. More specifically, the second rowindicates that the filtering process is applied to the musical-piecefiles stored in the musical-piece-file storage section 108 by a genrename.

“Filter=%sLike‘%%%1%%’” is described at a third row to show a conditionfor the filtering process. It is indicated that the value specified inthe second-row description in the format defined by “Like‘%%%1%%’”, thatis, a parameter which specifies the genre name, is substituted for “%s.”

“SortPropertySpecId=200” is described at a fourth row to indicate aproperty by which a sort process is applied. In the current case, theparameter is set to “200” to indicate that the genre name is used as areference for the sort process. More specifically, the fourth rowindicates that the sort process is applied to the musical-piece filesstored in the musical-piece-file storage section 108 by the genre name.

“Asc=1” is described at a fifth row to indicate whether the sort processshown at the fourth row is performed in an ascending order or in thedescending order. In the current case, since the parameter is set to“1,” the ascending order is used.

“ParamCount=1” is described at a sixth row to indicate the number ofparameters. In the current case, “1” is specified to indicate that thenumber of parameters is one. “ParamName1=genrename” is described at aseventh row to indicate the display name of the parameter. In thecurrent case, “genrename” is used. “ParamKey1=Genre” is described at aneighth row to indicate the inside name of the parameter. In the currentcase, it is indicated that the inside name of the parameter is “genre.”

In summary, the definition file of “specify genre” indicates that thefiltering process is applied with the genre name being used as aparameter and musical-piece files sorted in the ascending order areextracted.

In the definition file of “specify play list”, “ObjectSpecId=2” isdescribed at a first row. In the current case, it is indicated that themusical-piece-file storage section 108 selects a musical piece.

“Algorithm=PlayList” is described at a second row. A definition commandof “Algorithm” is used and a parameter is set to “PlayList” to indicatethat musical-piece files belonging to a predetermined play list areextracted.

“ParamCount=1” is described at a third row to indicate the number ofparameters. In the current case, “1” is specified to indicate that thenumber of parameters is one. “ParamName1=playlistname” is described at afourth row to indicate the display name of the parameter. In the currentcase, “playlistname” is used. “ParamKey1=PlayList” is described at afifth row to indicate the inside name of the parameter. In the currentcase, it is indicated that the inside name of the parameter is“PlayList.”

In summary, the definition file of “specify play list” indicates thatthe filtering process is applied with the play-list name being used as aparameter and the musical-piece files belonging to the play list aresorted in the ascending order and extracted.

The automatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113 stores foreach ID which identifies the corresponding PD 5, a file which defines anautomatic checking-out item (method) for each PD 5. When the automaticchecking-out process is executed, the file is referred to according tothe ID which identifies the corresponding PD 5.

The automatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113 stores foreach ID which identifies the corresponding PD 5,checking-out-destination information in a format shown in FIG. 9. Morespecifically, in this case, a first column records“0101A1346001001479FFFF000012D103” and“B059DE77420406004DC2000009005000” as external-unit/-medium IDs whichidentify PDs 5, and they identify the corresponding external-unit/mediumnames, “memory card A” and “memory card B.” As “checking-out item-1” ofthe memory card A identified by an ID of“0101A1346001001479FFFF0000012D103”, “musical pieces recently listenedto” is specified, and nothing is specified as “checking-out item-2”.More specifically, in this case, “musical pieces recently listened to”are extracted according to the definition file stored in theautomatic-checking-out-item storage section 112, described by referringto FIG. 8, and recorded in the memory card A, identified by an ID of“0101A1346001001479FFFF000012D103.”

As “checking-out item-1” of the memory card B identified by an ID of“B059DE77420406004DC2000009005000,” “specify genre” is specified,“Blues” is specified as a parameter, “specify play list” is specified as“checking-out item-2”, and “My favorites” are specified as a parameter.More specifically, in this case, musical-piece files having a genre of“Blues” and musical-piece files belonging to a play list of “Myfavorites” are mixed and alternately extracted in the memory card B,identified by an ID of “B059DE77420406004DC2000009005000.” A mixingprocess will be described later in detail.

An example screen displayed by the GUI section 101 on the display 20when contents recorded in each of the personal computer 1 and a PD 5 aremutually checked in or checked out and managed will be described next byreferring to FIG. 10.

A PD field 201 displays information of contents recorded in the PD 5.The numbers of tracks where the contents are recorded are displayed atthe left-hand side, and the titles of the contents are displayed at theright-hand side. In the current case, the titles of contents are shownas “Song-3” in track number 01, “Song-5” in track number 02, “Song-7” intrack number 03, “Song-9” in track number 04, and “Song-11” in tracknumber 05.

Under them, “Group 1” is displayed, and titles are displayed as“Song-12” in track number 06, “Song-13” in track number 07, and“Song-14” in track number 08. It is indicated that “Song-12,” “Song-13,”and “Song-14,” which are the contents in track numbers 06 to 08, belongto a group called Group 1.

Further, under them, “Song-15” to “Song-18” are displayed in tracknumbers 09 to 12, respectively. Tracks and the corresponding storedcontents are indicated.

Above the PD field 201 in the figure, a disk-name indication column isprovided. In the current case, “MEMORY CARD A” is indicated as the diskname. Further above, a PD-name indication column 211 is provided. In thecurrent case, “MEMORY CARD” is indicated to show that a memory card isselected as the PD 5. Any portable device currently connected to thepersonal computer 1 can be selected in the PD-name indication column211. In the current case, for example, any of the PDs 5-1 to 5-3 can beselected. Information on the contents recorded in the selected PD 5 isdisplayed in the PD field 201.

At the left-hand side of the PD field 201, a PC (personal computer)field 202 is indicated. The PC field 202 indicates the list of contentscorresponding to a filter selected in a filter indication field 203indicated at the left-hand side of the PC field 202, the contents beingstored in the musical-piece-file storage section 107 in the personalcomputer 1. In the current case, sine “ALL MUSICAL PIECES” is selectedin the filter indication field 203, the PC field 202 indicates allcontents recorded in the musical-piece-file storage section 107 of thepersonal computer 1. “Song-1” is indicated at track number 1, “Song-2”at track number 2, “Song-3” at track number 3, “Song-4” at track number4, and “Song-5” at track number 5. The artist name and genre of eachcontent can also be read from the data base 107 and displayed. In thecurrent case, since they have not been input, “Unknown” is indicated.

Between the PD field 201 and the PC field 202, a check-in button 213, acheck-out button 214, an all-check-in button 215, a start button 216,and a stop button 217 are displayed. To specify a content to be checkedin to the personal computer 1 among the contents recorded in the PD 5,the user, for example, operates the mouse 19 to press the check-inbutton 213. Pressing the button specifies the selected content as acontent to be checked in. To specify a content to be checked out to thePD 5, the user, for example, operates the mouse 19 to press thecheck-out button 214. Pressing the button specifies the content to bechecked out.

To specify all contents recorded in the PD 5 as contents to be checkedin to the personal computer 1, the user, for example, operates the mouse19 to press the all-check-in button 215. Pressing the button specifiesall the contents as contents to be checked out.

When a content to be checked in or a content to be checked out has beenspecified by the check-in button 213, the check-out button 214, or theall-check-in button 215, the user presses the start button 216 to startchecking in or checking out. When the start button 216 was pressed andthe checking-in or checking-out process is being executed, the userpresses the stop button 217 to stop the process. The user operates, forexample, the mouse 19 to move a pointer 205.

Automatic check-in/check-out setting processing will be described nextby referring to a flowchart shown in FIG. 11.

In step S1, the GUI section 101 determines whether automaticcheck-in/check-out setting has been selected, and repeats the processuntil the setting is selected. As shown in FIG. 10, for example, it isdetermined that the setting has been selected when the pointer 205 ismoved to a tool button 221 and a predetermined operation is performed(for example, the mouse is clicked); then, a drop down list 231 isdisplayed as shown in FIG. 12; and further a setting column 23 la isselected (clicked). The setting processing proceeds to step S2.

In step S2, the GUI section 101 displays a setting dialog box 241 asshown in FIG. 13. The dialog box 241 includes tabs of “GENERAL”,“PLAYER”, “CD RECORDING/REPRODUCTION 1”, “CD RECORDING/REPRODUCTION 2”,“IMPORT”, “PLAY LIST”, “EXTERNAL UNIT/MEDIUM”, and “INTERNET”. When atab is clicked, the dialog box 241 displays another indication.

In step S3, the GUI section 101 determines whether the “EXTERNALUNIT/MEDIUM” tab has been selected. When it is determined that theexternal unit/medium tab 241 a has been selected (clicked), for example,the GUI section 101 displays the setting contents of the externalunit/medium as shown in FIG. 13. In the dialog box 241, items of“DISPLAYING/NOT DISPLAYING MESSAGE”, “DISPLAYING/NOT DISPLAYING BUTTON”,“WRITING ADDITIONAL INFORMATION”, and “AUTOMATIC CHECK IN/CHECK OUT” aredisplayed as the setting contents of the external unit/medium, and checkboxes for turning on or off the corresponding setting contents are alsodisplayed.

In step S5, the GUI section 101 determines whether the automaticcheck-in/check-out check box has been checked (for example, whether anOK button has been pressed while the box is checked). When the check box241 c in the automatic check-in/-out column 241 b has been checked (theOK button is pressed when the check box 241 c has been checked) as shownin FIG. 13, for example, the GUI section 101 sets in step S6 theoperation mode of automatic check in/check out ON, and the settingprocessing returns to step S1. When it is determined in step S3 that theexternal unit/medium tab 241 a has not been selected, in other words,when another setting tab is selected, or when a cancel button isselected, the setting processing returns to the process of step S1.

When it is determined in step S5 that the check box 241 c of theautomatic check-in/-out column 241 b has not been checked (for example,that the OK button is pressed when the check box 241 c is not checked),the GUI section 101 sets in step S7 the operation mode of automaticcheck in/check out OFF, the setting processing returns to step S1, andthe subsequent processes are repeated.

Automatic check-in/-out processing executed by the personal computer 1when the PD 5 is connected to the personal computer 1 will be describednext by referring to FIG. 14.

In step S11, the GUI section 101 determines through the transferprocessing section 103 and the PD plug-in 111 whether a connection tothe PD 5 (external unit/medium) has been detected, and repeats theprocess until the connection to the PD 5 is detected. When theconnection to the PD 5 is detected, and it is determined that anexternal unit/medium has been detected, for example, the processingproceeds to step S12.

In step S12, the GUI section 101 determines whether automatic checkin/check out has been turned on. When the operation mode of automaticcheck in/check out has been set on in the automatic check-in/check-outsetting processing, described by referring to the flowchart of FIG. 11,for example, the automatic check-in/check-out processing proceeds tostep S13.

In step S13, the GUI section 101 obtains the external-unit/-medium ID ofthe PD 5 through the transfer processing section 103 and the PD plug-in111.

In step S14, the GUI section 101 makes the musical-piece managementsection 104 refer to the automatic-checking-out-destination storagesection 113 according to the obtained external-unit/-medium ID todetermine whether the PD 5 is an external unit/medium already recorded(for which it has been recorded that the check out/check in processingwas executed in the past). For example, when it is determined that thePD 5 is an external unit/medium already recorded, in other words, whenthe PD 5 is an external unit/medium for which checking out or checkingin was performed in the past, the processing proceeds to step S15.

In step S15, the GUI section 101 makes the musical-piece managementsection 104 refer to the automatic-checking-out-destination storagesection 113 to search for a checking-out method corresponding to theexternal-unit/-medium ID and to read it.

In step S16, the GUI section 101 displays a dialog box 251 of automaticcheck in/check out, as shown in FIG. 15, and indicates a count-down timein a count-down display section 251 a. More specifically, in the case ofFIG. 15, the dialog box 251 shows “AUTOMATIC CHECK IN/CHECK OUT IS GOINGTO BE PERFORMED. SELECT CHECKING-OUT ITEM. OPERATION WILL START IN 8SECONDS.” A checking-out-item display column 252 a shows theautomatic-checking-out item corresponding to the external-unit/-mediumID of the PD 5, stored in the automatic-check-out-destination storagesection 113. In the current case, the check-out-item display column 252shows “MUSICAL PIECES SELECTED AT RANDOM” to indicate that theautomatic-check-out item stored in the automatic-checking-out-itemstorage section 112 is “musical pieces selected at random.”

In step S17, the GUI section 101 determines whether the user hasexecuted a setting change process. When the user operates the mouse 19to press by the pointer 205 a button 252 a disposed at the right-handside of the checking-out-item display column 252 shown in FIG. 15, forexample, a drop down list 261 is displayed below the checking-out-itemdisplay column 252, as shown in FIG. 16. The drop down list 261 shows asselectable check-out items, “MUSICAL PIECES RECENTLY LISTENED TO”,“MUSICAL PIECES CHECKED OUT A SMALL NUMBER OF TIMES”, “MUSICAL PIECES ONA FAVORITE PLAY LIST”, “MUSICAL PIECES SELECTED AT RANDOM”, “PLAY LISTSELECTED AT RANDOM”, “SPECIFY GENRE (Blues)”, and “SPECIFY PLAY LIST(Red Planet)”. The user can operate the pointer 205 to select one ofthem. At this state, the GUI section 101 determines that the user hasexecuted the setting change process, and the processing proceeds to stepS18.

In step S18, the GUI section 101 stops counting down. More specifically,as shown in FIG. 16, the count-down time is not displayed in thecount-down display section 251 a.

In step S19, the GUI section 101 controls a screen to be displayed onthe display 20 to execute setting processing.

The setting processing will be described here by referring to aflowchart shown in FIG. 17.

In step S31, the GUI section 101 determines whether “musical piecesrecently listened to” has been selected. When the pointer 205 is movedonto “MUSICAL PIECES RECENTLY LISTENED TO” in the drop down list 261shown in FIG. 16 and it is selected (clicked), for example, the GUIsection 101 determines that “musical pieces recently listened to” hasbeen selected. In step S32, the GUI section 101 makes the musical-piecemanagement section 104 change the checking-out item-1 (shown in FIG. 9)stored in the automatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113 to“musical pieces recently listened to” and the processing proceeds tostep S49.

When it is determined in step S31 that “musical pieces recently listenedto” has not been selected, the processing proceeds to step S33.

In step S33, the GUI section 101 determines whether “musical pieceschecked out a small number of times” has been selected. When the pointer205 is moved onto “MUSICAL PIECES CHECKED OUT A SMALL NUMBER OF TIMES”in the drop down list 261 shown in FIG. 16 and it is selected (clicked),for example, the GUI section 101 determines that “musical pieces checkedout a small number of times” has been selected. In step S34, the GUIsection 101 makes the musical-piece management section 104 change thechecking-out item-1 (shown in FIG. 9) stored in theautomatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113 to “musicalpieces checked out a small number of times” and the processing proceedsto step S49.

When it is determined in step S33 that “musical pieces checked out asmall number of times” has not been selected, the processing proceeds tostep S35.

In step S35, the GUI section 101 determines whether “musical pieces on afavorite play list” has been selected. When the pointer 205 is movedonto “MUSICAL PIECES ON A FAVORITE PLAY LIST” in the drop down list 261shown in FIG. 16 and it is selected (clicked), for example, the GUIsection 101 determines that “musical pieces on a favorite play list” hasbeen selected. In step S36, the GUI section 101 makes the musical-piecemanagement section 104 change the checking-out item-1 (shown in FIG. 9)stored in the automatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113 to“musical pieces on a favorite play list” and the processing proceeds tostep S49.

When it is determined in step S35 that “musical pieces on a favoriteplay list” has not been selected, the processing proceeds to step S37.

In step S37, the GUI section 101 determines whether “musical piecesselected at random” has been selected. When the pointer 205 is movedonto “MUSICAL PIECES SELECTED AT RANDOM” in the drop down list 261 shownin FIG. 16 and it is selected (clicked), for example, the GUI section101 determines that “musical pieces selected at random” has beenselected. In step S38, the GUI section 101 makes the musical-piecemanagement section 104 change the checking-out item-1 (shown in FIG. 9)stored in the automatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113 to“musical pieces selected at random” and the processing proceeds to stepS49.

When it is determined in step S37 that “musical pieces selected atrandom” has not been selected, the processing proceeds to step S39.

In step S39, the GUI section 101 determines whether “a play listselected at random” has been selected. When the pointer 205 is movedonto “PLAY LIST SELECTED AT RANDOM” in the drop down list 261 shown inFIG. 16 and it is selected (clicked), for example, the GUI section 101determines that “a play list selected at random” has been selected. Instep S40, the GUI section 101 makes the musical-piece management section104 change the checking-out item-1 (shown in FIG. 9) stored in theautomatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113 to “a play listselected at random” and the processing proceeds to step S49.

When it is determined in step S39 that “a play list selected at random”has not been selected, the processing proceeds to step S41.

In step S41, the GUI section 101 determines whether “specify genre” hasbeen selected. When the pointer 205 is moved onto “SPECIFY GENRE” in thedrop down list 261 shown in FIG. 16 and it is selected (clicked), forexample, the GUI section 101 determines that “specify genre” has beenselected. In step S42, the GUI section 101 displays a dialog box 271indicating details of the genre, as shown in FIG. 18. In the dialog box271, selectable genre names are indicated in a genre-name selectioncolumn 271 a. A desired genre can be selected by operating the pointer205.

In step S43, the GUI section 101 determines whether a genre has beenselected. When “Blues” is selected as shown in FIG. 18, for example, theGUI section 101 determines that the genre has been selected, and theprocessing proceeds to step S44. In step S44, the GUI section 101 makesthe musical-piece management section 104 set the checking-out item-1 to“specify genre” and the variable-1 (parameter) to the selected genrename (in the current case, “Blues” is set as the genre name) as thechecking-out-destination information to be stored in theautomatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113, and theprocessing proceeds to step S49.

When it is determined in step S41 that “specify genre” has not beenselected, or when it is determined in step S43 that a genre has not beenselected, the processing proceeds to step S45.

In step S45, the GUI section 101 determines whether “specify play list”has been selected. When the pointer 205 is moved onto “SPECIFY PLAYLIST” in the drop down list 261 shown in FIG. 16 and it is selected(clicked), for example, the GUI section 101 determines that “specifyplay list” has been selected. In step S46, the GUI section 101 displaysa dialog box 281 indicating details of play lists, as shown in FIG. 19.In the dialog box 281, selectable play-list names are indicated in aplay-list-name selection column 281 a. A desired genre can be selectedby operating the pointer 205.

In step S47, the GUI section 101 determines whether a genre has beenselected. When “Blue Moon” is selected as shown in FIG. 19, for example,the GUI section 101 determines that the play list has been selected, andthe processing proceeds to step S48. In step S48, the GUI section 101makes the musical-piece management section 104 set the checking-outitem-1 to “specify play list” and the variable-1 (parameter) to theselected play list (in the current case, “Blue Moon” is set as theplay-list name) as the checking-out-destination information to be storedin the automatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113, and theprocessing proceeds to step S49.

When it is determined in step S45 that “specify play list” has not beenselected, or when it is determined in step S47 that a play list has notbeen selected, the processing returns to step S31.

In step S49, the GUI section 101 determines whether “mix” has beenselected. When the mix button 253 is pressed by the pointer 205 (themouse 19 is clicked) in the dialog box 251 as shown in FIG. 15, “SELECTITEM TO BE MIXED AT CHECKING OUT” is displayed at a lower portion of thedialog box 251, as shown in FIG. 20, and a checking-out item displaycolumn 291 is shown at a further lower portion. It is determined at thispoint of time that “mix” is selected, and the processing proceeds tostep S50. In step S50, the GUI section 101 executes mix checking-outsetting processing.

When the pointer 205 is moved onto a button 291 a shown in FIG. 20, andthe mouse is clicked, the same drop down list 301 as the drop down list261 (FIG. 16) is displayed, as shown in FIG. 21. In other words, the mixchecking-out setting processing changes the checking-out item-2 and thevariable-2 among the pieces of information stored in theautomatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113, and issubstantially the same as the processes of step S31 to step S48 shown inFIG. 17 (the processes which exclude those performed in step S49 andstep S50 in the flowchart shown in FIG. 7). Therefore, a descriptionthereof is omitted.

When it is determined in step S49 that “mix” has not been selected, theprocess of step S50 is skipped and the setting processing is terminated.The processing returns to step S16 (FIG. 14).

The setting processing has been described in a case in which theexternal-unit/-medium ID has been input. When the PD 5 has anexternal-unit/-medium ID which is used for the first time and has notbeen input, the external-unit/-medium ID of the PD 5 is read and thecorresponding checking-out item-1 and item-2 are input to theautomatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113 in the process ofstep S32, S34, S36, S38, S40, S44, or S48.

The description of the flowchart shown in FIG. 14 will be started again.

When it is determined in step S17 that the user has not executed thesetting change process, the processing proceeds to step S20. In stepS20, the GUI section 101 determines whether the set time has elapsed,and returns to step S17 until the set time has elapsed. In other words,the processes of steps S17 and S20 are repeated until the set time haselapsed by counting down. When it is determined in step S20 that the settime has elapsed, that is, counting down has finished, the processingproceeds to step S21. In step S21, the transfer processing section 103checks in all musical-piece files (contents) recorded in the PD 5 intothe personal computer 1.

In step S22, the GUI section 101 inquires of the musical-piecemanagement section 104 whether “mix” has been specified in thechecking-out item stored in the automatic-checking-out-destinationstorage section 113. When it is determined the “mix” has not beenspecified, the processing proceeds to step S23.

In step S23, the GUI section 101 makes the musical-piece managementsection 104 read a definition file corresponding to the specifiedchecking-out item from the automatic-checking-out-item storage section112, specifies according to the definition file the correspondingcontent to be checked out, and displays the corresponding image. Morespecifically, for example, when “select genre” is specified as achecking-out item, and musical-piece files (contents) corresponding to agenre name of “AAA” are to be checked out to the PD 5, “Song-3”,“Song-5”, and “Song-7” having a genre of “AAA” are specified aschecking-out contents among the contents displayed in the PC field 202,right-pointing arrows are displayed at the left-hand side of the titlesin the PD field 201 to indicate these checking-out contents, andleft-pointing arrows are displayed at the left-hand side of the titlesfor the other contents to be checked in, as shown in FIG. 22. In thisway the contents (musical-piece files) to be checked out and thecontents (musical-piece files) to be checked in are displayed.

In step S24, the transfer processing section 24 reads the correspondingfiles to check out the musical-piece files for which checking out hasbeen specified, and the GUI section 101 displays the corresponding imageon the display 20. More specifically, when checking out has beenspecified as shown in FIG. 22, the process of step S24 displays themusical-piece files for which checking out has been specified, “Song-3”,“Song-5”, and “Song-7”, in the PD field 201, and checks in the othermusical-piece files, “Song-9”, “Song-11”, and “Song-15” from the PD 5 tothe personal computer 1, as shown in FIG. 23.

When it is determined in step S22 that “mix” has been specified, theprocessing proceeds to step S25. In step S25, the GUI section 101executes mix checking-out designation processing.

The mix checking-out processing will be described below by referring toa flowchart shown in FIG. 24.

In step S61, the musical-piece management section 104 obtains the listof contents corresponding to the checking-out item-1, stored in theautomatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113, and sets anarrangement A(m) according to the list.

In step S62, the musical-piece management section 104 obtains the listof contents corresponding to the checking-out item-2, stored in theautomatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113, and sets anarrangement B(n) according to the list.

In step S63, the musical-piece management section 104 initializes acounter “i” to zero. In step S64, the musical-piece management section104 determines whether i<m or i<n, that is, whether the counter “i” issmaller than either of the numbers of contents in the arrangements A(m)and B(n) defined by the checking-out item-1 and item-2. When it isdetermined that i<m or i<n, the processing proceeds to step S65.

In step S65, it is determined whether i<m. When it is determined thati<m, the musical-piece management section 104 determines through thetransfer processing section 103 and the PD plug-in 111 whether the PD 5(recording medium) has a remaining capacity (capacity with which thecontent defined by A(i) can be checked out) in step S66. When it isdetermined in step S66 that the PD 5 has a remaining capacity, themusical-piece management section 104 specifies the musical-piece file(content) corresponding to the arrangement A(i) as a checking-outcontent, and the GUI section 101 displays the corresponding image on thedisplay 20 in step S67. Then, the processing proceeds to step S68.

In step S68, it is determined whether i<n. When it is determined thati<n, the musical-piece management section 104 determines through thetransfer processing section 103 and the PD plug-in 111 whether the PD 5(recording medium) has a remaining capacity in step S69. When it isdetermined in step S69 that the PD 5 has a remaining capacity, themusical-piece management section 014 specifies the musical-piece file(content) corresponding to the arrangement B(i) as a checking-outcontent, and the GUI section 101 displays the corresponding image on thedisplay 20 in step S70. Then, the processing proceeds to step S71.

In step S71, the musical-piece management section 104 increments thecounter “i” by one to set i=i+1, and the processing proceeds to stepS64.

When it is determined in step S64 that i≧m and i≧n, in other words, itis deemed that there is no content (musical-piece file) specified by thechecking-out item-1 and item-2, the processing is terminated.

When it is determined in step S66 or in step S69 that the PD 5(recording medium) has no remaining capacity, it is deemed that amusical-piece file (content) cannot be recorded any more, and theprocessing is terminated.

In summary, with the above processes, the contents specified in thearrangements of the checking-out item-1 and item-2 are alternatelyspecified as a checking-out item in steps S67 and S70, and when there isno content to be specified as a checking-out item (i≧m and i≧n in stepS64), or when it is determined that the recording medium has noremaining capacity (when it is determined in step S66 or S69 that therecording medium has no remaining capacity), the content checking-outdesignation processing is terminated.

The description of the flowchart shown in FIG. 14 will be started again.

When it is determined in step S12 that automatic checking in/out has notbeen set on, since the automatic checking-in processing is not executed,the processes of step S13 to step S24 are all skipped, and theprocessing is terminated.

When it is determined in step S14 that it is not anexternal-unit/-medium ID recorded in advance, since the information ofthe checking-out item corresponding to the external unit/medium has notbeen stored in the automatic-checking-out-destination storage section113, the process of step S5, in which the checking-out itemcorresponding to the external-unit/-medium ID is searched for, isskipped.

According to the above description, just when the PD 5 is connected tothe personal computer 1, contents recorded in the PD 5 are checked in tothe personal computer 1, and a predetermined content is checked out fromthe personal computer 1 to the PD 5, according to a checking-out itemspecified in advance. Therefore, when new musical pieces are downloadedto the personal computer 1 everyday, for example, if a setting is madesuch that a predetermined genre is checked out, only a musical piecebelonging to the specified genre is checked out to the PD 5 among themusical pieces downloaded everyday. Consequently, the user can enjoy anew musical piece in a favorite genre everyday just by connecting the PD5 to the personal computer 1.

In the above description, a case has been explained in which theautomatic-checking-in/-out-destination setting processing is executed attiming when the automatic checking-in/-out processing is executed. Thesetting processing may be executed at timing different from that whenthe automatic checking-in/-out processing is executed.

The automatic-checking-in/-out-destination setting processing will bedescribed below by referring to a flowchart shown in FIG. 25.

In step S81, the GUI section 101 determines whetherchecking-out-destination setting has been selected, and repeats theprocess until the checking-out-destination setting is selected. When“AUTOMATIC CHECKING-OUT-DESTINATION SETTING” is selected in the dropdown list 231 shown in FIG. 12, for example, the GUI section 101determines the checking-out-destination setting has been selected. Theprocessing proceeds to step S82.

In step S82, the GUI section 101 displays, for example, a dialog box 321for automatic-checking-out-destination setting, as shown in FIG. 26. Inthe dialog box 321, the information of checking-out destinationscurrently stored in the automatic-checking-out-destination storagesection 113 is displayed in an external-unit/-medium display column 322.In the external-unit/-medium display column 322, anexternal-unit/-medium name, checking-out item (1), and checking out (2)are displayed from the left in the figure. The checking-out items (1)and (2) show the information of the checking-out item-1 and item-2stored in the automatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113. Inthe current case, it is indicated for the memory card A that “MUSICALPIECES RECENTLY LISTENED TO” is selected in the checking-out item (1),“SELECT GENRE” is selected in the checking-out item (2), and “Blues” isspecified as the genre. It is further indicated for the memory card Bthat “SELECT GENRE” is selected in the checking-out item (1), “Blues” isselected as the genre, and nothing is specified in the checking-out item(2).

In step S83, the GUI section 101 determines whether addition has beenselected. When an ADD button 323 shown in FIG. 26 is pressed, forexample, it is determined that addition has been selected. In step S84,the GUI section 101 displays a dialog box 331 for anautomatic-checking-out-destination addition, as shown in FIG. 27. Theuser can input text data which specifies an external unit/medium to beadded in an input column 331 a on the dialog box.

In step S85, the setting processing is performed. In the current case,checking-out item display columns 322 and 333, and buttons 332 a and 333a corresponding to the checking-out item display columns 252 and 291 andthe buttons 252 a and 291 a shown in FIG. 20 are provided. The sameprocessing as that described by referring to the flowchart shown in FIG.17 is executed, and therefore, a description thereof is omitted. FIG. 27shows a state in which the MIX button 253 shown in FIG. 20 was pressed.The system may be configured such that, when the user does not want tospecify “mix”, the user selects “none” in the checking-out item displaycolumn 333 to implement the same process.

In step S86, the GUI section 101 determines whether an OK button hasbeen pressed. When it is determined that the OK button has been pressed,the GUI section 101 temporarily stores an addition. The processingproceeds to step S88.

In step S88, the GUI section 101 determines whether editing has beenselected. When an EDIT button 326 shown in FIG. 26 is pressed, forexample, it is determined that editing has been selected. In step S89,the GUI section 101 displays a dialog box 341 forautomatic-checking-out-destination editing, as shown in FIG. 28.

In step S89, the setting processing is executed. In the current case, inthe same way as in FIG. 27, checking-out item display columns 342 and343, and buttons 342 a and 343 a corresponding to the checking-out itemdisplay columns 252 and 291 and the buttons 252 a and 291 a shown inFIG. 20 are provided. The same processing as that described by referringto the flowchart shown in FIG. 17 is executed, and therefore, adescription thereof is omitted. FIG. 28 shows a state in which the MIXbutton 253 shown in FIG. 20 was pressed. The system may be configuredsuch that, when the user does not want to specify “mix”, the userselects “none” in the checking-out item display column 333 to implementthe same process.

In step S91, the GUI section 101 determines whether the OK button hasbeen pressed. When it is determined that the OK button has been pressed,the GUI section 101 temporarily stores an addition. The processingproceeds to step S93.

In step S93, the GUI section 101 determines whether deletion has beenselected. When a DELETE button 325 shown in FIG. 26 is pressed, forexample, it is determined that deletion has been selected. In step S94,the GUI section 101 deletes the checking-out item of the selectedexternal unit/medium and temporarily stores it.

In step S95, the GUI section 101 determines whether OK has beenselected. When it is determined that OK has been selected, the GUIsection 101 controls the musical-piece management section 104 to storethe addition, editing, or deletion information temporarily stored foreach external-unit/-medium ID, in the automatic-checking-out-destinationstorage section 113, and the processing is terminated.

When it is determined in step S95 that OK has not been selected, the GUIsection 101 determines in step S97 whether cancellation has beenselected. When it is determined that cancellation has been selected, theprocessing proceeds to step S98.

In step S98, the GUI section 101 does not change the setting contentsrelated to the automatic checking-out destinations, stored in theautomatic-checking-out-destination storage section 113, and theprocessing is terminated.

When it is determined in step S83 that addition has not been selected,the processes of step S84 to step S87 are skipped. When OK has not beenpressed in step S86, that is, cancellation is made, the process of stepS87 is skipped.

When it is determined in step S88 that editing has not been selected,the processes of step S89 to step S92 are skipped. When OK has not beenpressed in step S91, that is, cancellation is made, the process of stepS92 is skipped.

When it is determined in step S93 that deletion has not been selected,the process of step S94 is skipped. When cancellation has not beenselected in step S97, the processing returns to step S83 and thesubsequent processes are repeated.

In the above case, the automatic-checking-out-destination storagesection 113 of the personal computer 1 stores the checking-out items. Asshown in FIG. 27 and FIG. 28, for example, the checking-out items can bestored in an external unit/medium (in the current case, in the PD 5) byclicking the mouse at a check box 334 or 344 to input a check mark. Withthis, even when the PD 5 is connected to a personal computer differentfrom the personal computer 1, in which the checking-out items of the PD5 have been specified, the above-described processes can be implementedaccording to the checking-out items.

In the above case, a memory card is used as an example of the PD 5.Other external units or other recording medium, such as an MD (Mini Disc(registered trademark)) may be used.

In the above description, a case in which musical-piece files are usedas contents has been explained. The contents are not limited tomusical-piece files, but may be image files. In the above description,the automatic checking-out items (methods) include seven items, “musicalpieces recently listened to”, “musical pieces checked out a small numberof times”, “musical pieces on a favorite play list”, “musical piecesselected at random”, “a play list selected at random”, “specify genre”,and “specify play list”. Other methods may be used.

Further, in the above case, two checking-out items can be specified inthe “mix” setting. The number of checking-out items to be specified isnot limited to this case, but may be more than that. The contentscorresponding to the checking-out items may not only output alternatelybut also checked out in another order.

According to the above description, a process for changing contentsrecorded in a recording medium by using contents recorded in a personalcomputer can be executed more easily.

The above-described series of processing can be executed not only byhardware but also by software. When the series of processing is executedby software, a program constituting the software is installed from arecording medium to a computer which is built in special hardware, or toa unit which can execute various functions by installing variousprograms, such as a general-purpose personal computer.

The recording medium is formed not only of the HDD 21, which hasrecorded the program and is provided for the user while built in thepersonal computer in advance as shown in FIG. 2, but also of a packagemedium recording the program and distributed to the user for providingthe program separately from a computer, such as a magnetic disk 41(including a floppy disk), an optical disk 42 (including a CD-ROM(compact disk read only memory) and a DVD (digital versatile disk)), amagneto-optical disk 43 (including a MD (Mini-disk, registeredtrademark)), or a semiconductor memory 44 (including a Memory Stick).

In the present specification, steps describing the program stored in therecording medium include not only processes performed time-sequentiallyin the order of descriptions but also processes not necessarilyperformed time-sequentially but performed in parallel or separately.

In the present specification, a system refers to the entire structureformed of a plurality of apparatuses.

Industrial Applicability

According to the present invention, a process for changing contentsrecorded in a recording medium by using recorded contents can beexecuted more easily.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method fortransferring content from an information processing apparatus to aportable device, comprising the steps of: detecting by the informationprocessing apparatus a direct local connection between the informationprocessing apparatus and the portable device; obtaining a device ID ofthe portable device when the information processing apparatus isconnected to the portable device; setting a user-specified ruleregarding the content to be directly transferred to the portable devicefrom the information processing apparatus, said setting step beingperformed prior to detecting said connection and said content being heldon said information processing apparatus prior to detecting saidconnection; determining by the information processing apparatus whetherthe device ID of the portable device is already stored; determining bythe information processing apparatus whether the portable device hassufficient remaining capacity in which the content can be transferredfrom the information processing apparatus to the portable device whenthe device ID of the portable device is already stored; andautomatically transferring the content to the portable device based onthe rule and when the portable device has sufficient remaining capacity.2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of,extracting said content based on a predetermined condition.
 3. Themethod according to claim 2, wherein said predetermined conditionincludes at least one of contents recently listened to, contentstransferred less than a predetermined number of times, contents on afavorite play list, contents selected at random, and genre.
 4. Themethod according to claim 2, wherein said predetermined conditioncorresponds to one of the device IDs.
 5. The method according to claim1, further comprising the step of, not transferring the content to theportable device when the portable device does not have sufficientremaining capacity.
 6. The method according to claim 1, furthercomprising providing an indication as a function of remaining capacity.7. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions storedthereon that when executed by a processor perform steps comprising:detecting by an information processing apparatus a direct localconnection between the information processing apparatus and a portabledevice; obtaining a device ID of the portable device when the directlocal connection to the portable device is detected; setting auser-specified rule regarding the content to be directly transferred tothe portable device from the information processing apparatus, saidsetting step being performed prior to detecting said direct localconnection; determining by the information processing apparatus whetherthe device ID of the portable device is already stored; determining bythe information processing apparatus whether the portable device hassufficient capacity in which predetermined content can be transferredfrom the processing device to the portable device when the device ID ofthe portable device is already stored; and automatically transferringthe predetermined content to the portable device based on theuser-specified rule and when the portable device has sufficientremaining capacity.
 8. The medium of claim 7, further havinginstructions stored thereon that when executed by a processor perform afurther step comprising extracting said content based on a predeterminedcondition.
 9. The medium according to claim 8, wherein saidpredetermined condition includes at least one of contents recentlylistened to, contents transferred less than a predetermined number oftimes, contents on a favorite play list, contents selected at random,and genre.
 10. The medium according to claim 8, wherein saidpredetermined condition corresponds to one of the device IDs.
 11. Themedium of claim 7, further comprising the step of not transferring thecontent to the portable device when the portable device does not havesufficient remaining capacity.
 12. The medium according to claim 7,further comprising providing an indication as a function of remainingcapacity.
 13. An information processing apparatus for storing content,comprising: a port adapted to connect to a portable device; a storingunit adapted to store a program having computer readable instructions;and a processing unit adapted to execute said program stored by thestoring unit; wherein said program when executed by a processor performssteps including: detecting by the information processing apparatus adirect local connection to the portable device; obtaining a device ID ofthe portable device when the connection to the potable device isdetected; setting a user-specified rule regarding the content to bedirectly transferred to the portable device, said setting step beingperformed prior to detecting said connection and said content being heldon said information processing apparatus prior to detecting saidconnection; determining whether the device ID of the portable device isalready stored; determining by the information processing apparatuswhether the portable device has sufficient remaining capacity in whichthe content can be transferred when the device ID of the portable deviceis already stored; and automatically transferring the content to theportable device based on the user-specified rule and when the portabledevice has sufficient remaining capacity.
 14. The information processingapparatus of claim 13, wherein the program includes extracting saidcontent based on a predetermined condition.
 15. The informationprocessing apparatus of claim 14, wherein said predetermined conditionincludes at least one of contents recently listened to, contentstransferred less than a predetermined number of times, contents on afavorite play list, contents selected at random, and genre.
 16. Theinformation processing apparatus of claim 14, wherein said predeterminedcondition corresponds to one of the device IDs.
 17. The informationprocessing apparatus of claim 13, wherein the program includes nottransferring the content to the portable device when the portable devicedoes not have sufficient remaining capacity.
 18. The informationprocessing apparatus of claim 13, wherein the process includes providingan indication as a function of remaining capacity.
 19. An informationprocessing apparatus, comprising: a port adapted to connect to aportable device; storing means for storing content and data related tothe content; means for setting a user-specified rule regarding thecontent to be directly transferred to the portable device; firstdetermining means for determining in the information processingapparatus whether a direct local connection from the informationprocessing apparatus to the portable device has been detected, saiduser-specified rule being set prior to said direct local connectionbeing detected and said content being held on said informationprocessing apparatus prior to detecting said connection; obtaining meansfor obtaining a device ID of the portable device when the connection tothe potable device is detected; second determining means for determiningwhether the device ID of the portable device is already stored; thirddetermining means for determining whether the portable device hassufficient remaining capacity in which the content can be transferredwhen the device ID of the portable device is already stored; andtransferring means for automatically transferring the content to theportable device based on the user-specified rule and when it isdetermined that the portable device has sufficient remaining capacity.20. The information processing apparatus of claim 19, further comprisingmeans for extracting said content based on a predetermined condition.21. The information processing apparatus of claim 20, wherein saidpredetermined condition includes at least one of contents recentlylistened to, contents transferred less than a predetermined number oftimes, contents on a favorite play list, contents selected at random,and genre.
 22. The information processing apparatus of claim 20, whereinsaid predetermined condition corresponds to one of the device IDs. 23.The information processing apparatus of claim 19, wherein thetransferring means includes not transferring the content to the portabledevice when the portable device does not have sufficient remainingcapacity.
 24. The information processing apparatus of claim 19, furthercomprising means for providing an indication as a function of remainingcapacity.
 25. A portable device comprising: a connector adapted todirectly connect the portable device to an information processingapparatus; a first transferring unit adapted to transfer a device ID ofthe portable device to the information processing apparatus when adirect local connection between the information processing apparatus andthe portable device is detected by the information processing apparatus;a storing unit adapted to store content from the information processingapparatus according to a user-specified rule regarding the content to bedirectly transferred, said user-specified rule being set prior to saiddirect local connection being detected and said content being held onsaid information processing apparatus prior to detecting saidconnection; and a reproducing unit adapted to reproduce the contentstored in the storing unit that was directly transferred from theinformation processing apparatus, wherein said content is automaticallytransferred to the portable device based on the user-specified rule andwhen the device ID of the portable device is already stored by theinformation processing apparatus and the information processingapparatus determines that the portable device has sufficient storagecapacity for said content.
 26. The portable device of claim 25, whereinsaid content is extracted based on a predetermined condition.
 27. Theportable device of claim 26, wherein the said predetermined conditionincludes at least one of contents recently listened to, contentstransferred less than a predetermined number of times, contents on afavorite play list, contents selected at random, and genre.
 28. Theportable device of claim 26, wherein said predetermined conditioncorresponds to one of the device IDs.
 29. The portable device of claim25, wherein the content is not sent to the portable device when theportable device does not have sufficient remaining capacity.
 30. Theportable device of claim 25, wherein the transferring unit includesproviding an indication as a function of remaining capacity.
 31. Amethod of storing content to a portable device comprising the steps of:directly connecting the portable device to an information processingapparatus; transferring a device ID of the portable device to theinformation processing apparatus when a direct local connection to theportable device is detected by the information processing apparatus;storing the content from the information processing apparatus to auser-specified rule regarding the content to be directly transferred,said user-specified rule being set prior to said direct local connectionbeing detected; and reproducing the content stored in said storing stepthat was sent from the information processing apparatus, wherein saidcontent is automatically transferred to the portable device based on theuser-specified rule and when the device ID of the portable device isalready stored by the information processing apparatus and theinformation processing apparatus determines that the portable device hassufficient storage capacity for said content.
 32. The method of claim31, further comprising extracting said content based on a predeterminedcondition.
 33. The method of claim 32, wherein said predeterminedcondition includes at least one of contents recently listened to,contents transferred less than a predetermined number of times, contentson a favorite play list, contents selected at random, and genre.
 34. Themethod of claim 32, wherein said predetermined condition corresponds toone of the device IDs.
 35. The method of claim 31, further comprisingthe step of not transferring the content to the portable device when theportable device does not have sufficient remaining capacity.
 36. Themethod of claim 31, further comprising providing an indication as afunction of remaining capacity.
 37. A method for transferring contentfrom an information processing apparatus to a portable device,comprising the steps of: detecting by the information processingapparatus a direct local connection from the information processingapparatus to the portable device; obtaining a device ID of the portabledevice when the direct local connection to the portable device isdetected; setting a user specified rule regarding the content to bedirectly transferred to the portable device, said setting step beingperformed prior to detecting said direct local connection and saidcontent being held on said information processing apparatus prior todetecting said connection; determining by the information processingapparatus whether the device ID of the portable device is already storedprior to said detecting step, and automatically transferring an imagefile from the information processing apparatus to the portable devicebased on the user-specified rule and when the device ID of the portabledevice is already stored and the information processing apparatusdetermines the portable device has sufficient capacity to hold the imagefile.
 38. An apparatus in an information processing apparatus fortransferring content from the information processing apparatus to aportable device, comprising: a detecting unit adapted to detect at theinformation processing apparatus a direct local connection from theinformation processing apparatus to the portable device; an obtainingunit adapted to obtain a device ID of the portable device when thedirect local connection to the portable device is detected; a rulesetting unit that sets a user-specified rule for governing the contentto be directly transferred to the portable unit, said user-specifiedrule being set prior to said detecting unit detecting said direct localconnection and said content being held on said information processingapparatus prior to detecting said connection; a determining unit adaptedto determine whether the device ID of the portable device is alreadystored in the information processing apparatus prior to said detectingunit detecting said direct local connection, a storage unit configuredto store the content; a transfer mechanism configured to transfer animage file automatically to the portable device based on theuser-specified rule and, when the device ID of the portable device isalready stored and the information processing apparatus determines theportable device has sufficient capacity to hold the image file.
 39. Acomputer-based information processing method for transferring contentfrom an information processing apparatus to a portable device,comprising the steps of: detecting by the information processingapparatus a direct local connection from the information processingapparatus to the portable device; obtaining a device ID of the portabledevice when the direct local connection to the portable device isdetected; setting a user-specified rule regarding the content to betransferred to the portable device, said setting step being performedprior to detecting said direct local connection and said content beingheld on said information processing apparatus prior to detecting saidconnection; determining whether the device ID of the portable device isstored; determining whether the portable device has sufficient remainingcapacity in which a predetermined image file can be directly transferredfrom the information processing device when the device ID of theportable device is already stored; and automatically transferring theimage file to the portable device based on the user-specified rule andwhen the portable device has sufficient remaining capacity.
 40. Acomputer-based information processing apparatus for transferring contentfrom the information processing apparatus to a portable device,comprising: a detecting unit adapted to detect at the informationprocessing apparatus a direct local connection from the informationprocessing apparatus to the portable device; an obtaining unit adaptedto obtain a device ID of the portable device when the direct localconnection to the portable device is detected; a user-specified rulesetting unit that sets a rule for governing the content to transfer tothe portable unit, said user-specified rule being set prior to saiddetecting unit detecting said direct local connection and said contentbeing held on said information processing apparatus prior to detectingsaid connection; a first determining unit adapted to determine whetherthe device ID of the portable device is already stored in theinformation processing apparatus; and a second determining unit adaptedto determine whether the portable device has sufficient remainingcapacity in which a predetermined image file can be transferred when thedevice ID of the portable device is already stored, and a storage unitconfigured to store the content; wherein the image file is automaticallytransferred to the portable device, based on the user-specified rule andwhen the portable device has sufficient remaining capacity.
 41. Anapparatus as part of an information processing apparatus comprising: amemory; and at least one processor, coupled to the memory, programmed todetect at the information processing apparatus a direct local connectionbetween the information processing apparatus and a portable device;obtain a device ID of the portable device when the informationprocessing apparatus is connected to the portable device; set auser-specified rule for the content to be transferred to the portableunit, said rule being set prior to said direct local connection beingdetected and said content being held on said information processingapparatus prior to detecting said connection; determine whether thedevice ID of the portable device is already stored in the informationprocessing apparatus; determine whether the portable device hassufficient remaining capacity in which the predetermined content can betransferred from the information processing apparatus to the portabledevice when the device ID of the portable device is already stored; andautomatically transfer the content to the portable device based on theuser-specified rule and when the portable device has sufficientremaining capacity.
 42. The apparatus as claimed in claim 41, furthercomprising: not transferring the content to the portable device when theportable device does not have sufficient remaining capacity.
 43. Theapparatus of claim 41, being configured to extract said content based ona predetermined condition.
 44. The apparatus of claim 43, wherein saidpredetermined condition includes at least one of contents recentlylistened to, contents transferred less than a predetermined number oftimes, contents on a favorite play list, contents selected at random,and genre.
 45. The apparatus of claim 43, wherein the predeterminedcondition corresponds to one of the device IDs.
 46. The apparatus ofclaim 41, further configured to provide an indication as a function ofremaining capacity.
 47. An apparatus as part of an informationprocessing apparatus comprising: a memory; and at least one processor,coupled to the memory, programmed to detect at the informationprocessing apparatus a direct local connection from the informationprocessing apparatus to a portable device; obtain a device ID of theportable device when the direct local connection to the portable deviceis detected; set a user-specified rule for the content to be transferredto the portable unit, said rule being set prior to said direct localconnection being detected and said content being held on saidinformation processing apparatus prior to detecting said connection;determine whether the device ID of the portable device is already storedin the information processing apparatus; determine whether the portabledevice has sufficient remaining capacity in which a predetermined imagefile can be directly transferred to the portable device when the deviceID of the portable device is already stored; and automatically transferthe image file to the portable device based on the user-specified ruleand when the portable device has sufficient remaining capacity.
 48. Theapparatus as claimed in claim 47, further comprising program code fornot transferring the image file to the portable device when the portabledevice does not have sufficient remaining capacity.